The aims of this project were to study bonding of porcelain to metal systems used in dentistry: specifically, the bonding mechanism, the effect of coefficient of contraction (alpha) of metal and porcelain on interfacial shear stress and the effect of casting variables on the metal used in these systems. The new scanning electron microscope and new laboratory facilities have recently been installed and will be of significant value in these studies in the years to come. Experimental programs have proceeded in this first year to fulfill the objectives. Thermal contraction data on fourteen alloys and six porcelains have been gathered. New mathematical treatments of these data have been developed to better approximate the effect of an interfacial shear stress. New thermal shock bond tests are being developed which should lead to a better understnading of the correlations, if any, of the alpha value and bonding. Softening temperatures of the opaque and body porcelains have been determined. These data are of significance in evaluating the compatibility of the metal-porcelain system. Also high temperature creep values of the metals have been determined to better evaluate the differences between precious and nonprecious alloys in their clinical distortion characteristics.